Tabnak, which is affiliated with the regime in Tehran, called a report saying Khamenei had fallen into a coma or died a "shameless lie."

Quoting an "excellent" but anonymous source, leading American neocon Michael Ledeen wrote on his blog Tuesday, "Yesterday afternoon at 2: 15 pm local time Khamenei collapsed and was taken to his special clinic. Nobody – except his son and the doctors – has since been allowed to get near him. His official, but secret, status is 'in the hands of the gods'."

Fox News said Ledeen, a scholar at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, said a bulletin from the reformist opposition to Khamenei's regime reported "widespread rumors in the Tehran Bazaar that Khamenei has died," and described an "abnormal atmosphere" in the streets of Iran's capital, possibly implying an increased security presence.

Tabnak said the report was part of the West's attempt to "destabilize" Iran.

There has been no other official response to the rumors regarding Supreme Leader Khamenei's condition.